A bad idea

Ashley White’s legal case has been resolved six months after Septic was released and more than three years after Noah Thomas’ death.

Available now from The Roanoke Times.

A rural Virginia county rallies together when a child goes missing in 2015. When the boy is found dead in a septic tank four days later, many rally together to condemn his parents.

The people searching for Noah don’t know much about the child’s parents, other than Ashley White’s history with drug addiction. For many, that was enough.

Though Noah’s death is one of the most high profile cases in Pulaski County history, it wasn’t the first time his mother found herself at the center of tragedy.

The discovery of Noah’s body inside the family’s septic tank sets of a series of rumors about the way he got inside. But what does the evidence suggest?

Ashley White testifies she only left Noah for the length of a shower. She knows now that was a bad idea.

It might seem like Noah’s death is unique and unprecedented. It isn’t. Children die in septic tanks each year, but unlike Paul and Ashley, few of their parents see the inside of a courtroom.

Noah’s preschool teacher Stacy Arnett gave a eulogy at his funeral. She wanted to make sure people remembered him as a joyful little boy instead of just a life cut short by tragedy.